I am however, grateful for access to good healthcare, doctors, and medicine to help alleviate the illness crud that has kept our family sick on and off for almost 3 months!

YUCK!

So, I have fallen a few days behind (again) in my thankful posts. Let’s catch up, shall we. Day 27: I am so thankful to be able to hear sounds that bring joy to my heart. From my Micah Man’s infectious laughter, Kasen’s adorable sneezing spurts, to music that moves my soul, I am surrounded by beautiful sounds.

Pure joy in his laugh

This little guy shrieks with joy

Day 28: I am so grateful to have a few friends that stand the test of time, space, and life, especially my friend Melodi. If it wasn’t for a rotten, cheating, not worth the trouble boy back in 10th grade, we wouldn’t have met, so I guess I am grateful for that guy too! We have shared so much and weathered many changes, but through it all, we are still there for each other; still family. Her beauty runs deep, from the inside out, and she glows with positivity and warmth. She is always inspiring whether through words, ideas, or actions, like being brave enough to go all red after being a life-long blonde! I don’t know what I’d do without my Elo. I love you! ~ Eathe

Cheers to the best of friends

Day 29: My mom. She is amazing and I am so blessed to be her daughter. She has sacrificed more for me than I will ever know, and still does so today. She loves me unconditionally and encourages me in all I am. She is a wonderful Grams to my two boys and my sweet niece, Sophia, spoiling them appropriately. She is wise, even when I don’t want to admit it, and she is always there for me. She has taught me what it means to be strong and what it means to be sorry. She dreams for me and pushes me when I need it. She’s my mom, and I am forever grateful. I love you mommy.

Grams and Micah, Thanksgiving 2012

I am beyond blessed to have these moments of joy bring laughter in my life and music to my ears. I am comforted in the knowledge that I have friends whom are the family I have chosen. I have been given the perfect mom, for me. God is good, in all things, all the time.

One more day, so much more to be grateful for. Hmm..maybe I can be grateful all year long. Food for thought?!!

How is your November winding down? Are you still reflecting on all your grateful for or already focused on seasons greetings? It’s okay. I won’t judge!

Gracefully~~Heather

]]>https://heathertiger.wordpress.com/2012/11/30/30-days-of-a-thankful-heart-days-27-28-29-moments-of-joy-melodi-and-mom/feed/1heathertiger1530 Days of a Thankful Heart {Day 18} Answered Prayershttps://heathertiger.wordpress.com/2012/11/19/30-days-of-a-thankful-heart-day-18-answered-prayers/
https://heathertiger.wordpress.com/2012/11/19/30-days-of-a-thankful-heart-day-18-answered-prayers/#commentsMon, 19 Nov 2012 06:34:15 +0000http://heathertiger.wordpress.com/?p=1246It’s Sunday. In this house that means we spent most of the day at the church.

That happens when you are the pastor’s family.

It was a long day, as most Sundays are, and I didn’t even have time for my Sunday afternoon nap.

After a great sermon by The Hubs this morning, focused on John 3:16-21 and The Gift of Grace, our Abundant Life Small Group provided a spaghetti and lasagna lunch for the congregation, taking up donations to help fund various mission work in the conference. It was delicious and I am incredibly thankful to share life with this amazing group of individuals.

We were able to have a brief respite at home after lunch, even though I had to run back up to the church to decorate and tidy up for the Community-wide Thanksgiving Service our church was hosting that evening. I think The Hubs and the boys got a little bit of an afternoon nap, and I did manage 30 minutes to relax on the couch!

We headed back up to the church a bit before 5 and I corralled the kids while The Hubs prepared to welcome a few hundred people into our church. After our wonderful nursery volunteer arrived, I was free to find my seat in the growing crowd. Thankfully, my bestie, Michelle, and fellow pastor’s wife was saving me a seat.

As I searched for her, I recalled how I felt at the last community service before Easter. You can read about that here. The day of that Easter service I longed for a friend and so much more. It’s almost ironic because at that time as the flowers were beginning to bloom and life was sprouting and being born, my soul was in the midst of winter; dull, barren, shattered by loneliness and feeling left in the cold. Now six months later as the seasons are once again shifting and the blazing Fall colors are beginning to fall and wither, ready to hide away for winter, my soul is springing to life with the grace and goodness God has been working in me.

I now have that friend in my life. I’m getting healthier inside and out. I’m trying new things and facing new challenges, not with trepidation and bitterness, but with motivation and encouragement. I feel supported and purposed. God heard my cries and answered my prayers, in His time and His ways, and oh how good they are.

As I sat, by my friend, and listened to glorious worship music and unbelievable, rock your socks off, poetic preaching (thank you Mr. Thomas James of St. James Baptist Church in Fort Smith), I was moved to the verge of tears. They were tears of joy at the incredible recognition of how much God had been at work in my life just over the past six months.

The sermon was all about giving thanks. It didn’t have a title, but it had a tagline: “You’ve only got to think to thank.”

I only have to pause, think about what God has done for me, and my thanks should overflow.

Not only has He answered my prayers and heard my cries, but he has bound up my broken heart, given me strength to make it through, and grace to do so beautifully.

But it is so much deeper, yet so amazingly simple. His gifts of love, grace, provision, wisdom, and so many other things are more than I deserve and more than enough. He is enough, yet He still gives. He still hears. He still answers with abundantly more than and greater than I can conceive.

I could go on and on. I wish I could share the message from tonight’s service. I cannot put in words how moving and amazing it was! But even more amazing was the glory of God in that place, and His working in my life, every day, moment by moment, breath to breath.

I challenge you to stop and think. Think about God. Think about His gift of grace through His son, Jesus. Think and then give thanks for the free gift that is given to all who will accept it.

I’ll leave you with one of my favorite songs that sums up how I feel beautifully. The Shane and Shane version is one of my favorites. Enjoy, and spend some time thinking, thanking, and worshipping God.

Gracefully~~Heather

This is one of my favorite songs, and I love the version performed by Shane and Shane.

Artist: Hillsongs Australia
Song: When I think about the Lord

When I Think about the Lord,
How He saved me, how He raised me,
how He filled me, with the Holy Ghost.
How He healed me, to the uttermost.

When I Think about the Lord,
how He picked me up and turned me around,
how He placed my feet on solid ground

Chorus*

It makes me wanna shout,
Hallelujah,
Thank you JESUS,
LORD, your worthy, of all the glory, and all the honor,
and all the praise…

]]>https://heathertiger.wordpress.com/2012/11/19/30-days-of-a-thankful-heart-day-18-answered-prayers/feed/1Community Worshipheathertiger15Community Worship30 Days of a Thankful Heart {Day 9} Drama Queenshttps://heathertiger.wordpress.com/2012/11/09/30-days-of-a-thankful-heart-day-9-drama-queens/
https://heathertiger.wordpress.com/2012/11/09/30-days-of-a-thankful-heart-day-9-drama-queens/#commentsSat, 10 Nov 2012 04:15:35 +0000http://heathertiger.wordpress.com/?p=1178I love to read. It is a luxury that I took for granted before the hubs and I had children.

Pre-children, I could lose myself in a good novel or series and read cover to cover, no interruptions. I would read non-stop and often experience a book hang-over after completing a really great read.

Post-children, I usually have to wait until after bedtime to pick up my latest novel(s) and I am often too exhausted to read more than a chapter or two, not able to summon the enthusiasm to let the book transport me to another world. It has been a real adjustment for me to not finish a book within a day or two of starting it.

I know this is just a season of our lives, and a blessed one, as we focus our time and energy on our two little tiger cubs. I know the memories we make with them are far more precious than any storyline I could lose myself in.

Still, I look forward to the days I can re-ignite my novel affairs.

For now I am very grateful for the precious moments I can indulge my bookworm side. I even started a book club in August with some friends and while it has been slow to take-off, I have loved the gatherings and the books.

We named ourselves the Drama Queens and we take turns choosing a book and hosting the book club gatherings once a month. There is delicious food to share (recipes usually off Pinterest), stimulating conversation, and even an occasional movie watched. Mostly it is the chance to read a good book and share the sacred (kid-free) time with some fabulous ladies. Thank you sweet hubs for allowing me to have that time each month.

So, thank you Drama Queens for sharing this love of reading, good food, and great company!

Good friends & good reads

What about you, dear reader, do you love to read? Are you part of a book club?

]]>https://heathertiger.wordpress.com/2012/11/09/30-days-of-a-thankful-heart-day-9-drama-queens/feed/4IMG_3097heathertiger15bookclubApril Showerhttps://heathertiger.wordpress.com/2012/04/30/april-shower/
https://heathertiger.wordpress.com/2012/04/30/april-shower/#respondMon, 30 Apr 2012 19:57:22 +0000http://heathertiger.wordpress.com/?p=947If anyone is still hanging around my little blog after my recent absence, a few notes: 1) I’m still here. I am alive, though currently not so well. Sinus crud and nearing the end of my pregnancy are taking its toll. 2) Thank you to those who have stuck around. 3) I am struggling to find my energy and inspiration, so hang in there with me a bit longer, please!

I promised to post about the recent baby shower our wonderful church family hosted for us on the 22nd of April. The photos are finally edited, the gifts sorted if not put away, and I’m working on the long list of thank yous. Aaron and I were truly humbled by the outpouring of love, support, and generosity of our church family last Sunday at the shower. The decorations were lovely and had just the right amount of personal touches from ideas I had suggested, the food was scrumptious, and the company superb. I can’t say thank you enough to the many ladies who put forth so much time, effort, and energy into making the shower such a wonderful success and memory.

There were many photos taken, and I tried to take a few at home of just some of the fabulous gifts we received. I’m going to put most of the photos in gallery format to save some time. I hope you enjoy the pictures and the sneak peeks you’ll see of the nursery in progress!

“1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:”

“11 He has made everything beautiful in its time.” -Ecclesiastes 3:1 & 11

A friend handed me a copy of a devotional on Ecclesiastes 3:11 at church Sunday. She said she was doing her devotional and thought of me since I had recently been posting on this very idea; beauty. I was very grateful for two reasons: 1) She cared enough to think of me and make me a copy, and 2) She cares enough to read my little blog and remember something I wrote! Makes my heart happy.

The funny thing is that she didn’t realize she was sending me a much needed message from God. I didn’t read the devotional until after we had returned home from the Community Easter Service (yep, a week early), and I desperately needed to read that scripture and the accompanying message by then.

The author of the devotional, Nicole Johnson, focuses on the need for us to embrace beauty as part of who God created us to be. Instead of getting so caught up in seeing the pain or ugliness in and around us, we often need to spend time focused on the beauty God has created in and around us; not to mention the beauty He is working to create through us.

I realized that while I have been unearthing some of the ugliness in my life in order to do some soul restoration, I have let my vision get clouded with the negative a bit too much.

Unfortunately this revelation came at an inopportune time, at least in my mind. Apparently, God thought otherwise, and as Ecclesiastes 3:1 reminded me, there is a time for everything. The time was right before the Community Easter Service was about to start.

After dropping Micah off in the nursery, I went to find a seat for the worship service. One of the “perks” of being a pastor’s wife is not having to sit with the hubs in worship. (Sense the sarcasm?) This is one of my least favorite parts. I love sitting with Aaron and worshiping together. I miss it greatly. So as he made his way to the stage, I looked around for a seat, and quickly found myself sitting alone. ALONE. The few people I knew were already surrounded and engaged in conversations, so I found a seat near the back, on the aisle in case I got paged to pick Micah up, or paged to the bathroom via my 30 wk pregnant bladder.

As I looked around, waiting for the service to start, my gaze wandered over to a recent acquaintance I had made. She is the wife of the new youth pastor for the Assembly of God church, and we had gone out to lunch at the beginning of February, right after they had moved to town. We also took them muffins as a welcome to the neighborhood gift. Literally, they are in our “neighborhood.” Despite being close in proximity, in age, and in life stage (they are expecting their first child, a girl, a month before I am due), we have yet to connect again post lunch-date, apart from a few texts and an issued dinner invite on our part. While I have hope that the friendship seeds are just late in blooming, it’s been hard not to feel rejected.

As I sat watching this sweet girl who literally had people approaching her from all sides, I was overcome with loneliness. She seems to have made more connections in the not quite 3 months of being new in town, that I haven’t been able to make in almost two years. I told Aaron later, “My heart broke.” I was thrilled for her and her husband, that they have been welcomed and accepted so warmly, but my heart ached that it hasn’t been as easy or successful for us.

I don’t know if it was a combination of being tired and hormones, but I got choked up. As I didn’t want anyone to see the Methodist Pastor’s wife crying in the church, I quickly got up and made my way outside. It was hard to catch my breath, and I couldn’t stop the sobs that made their way out. Almost everything in me wanted to walk the 100+ yards back to our house, and just have an all out pity party; almost. I knew that I wanted to worship, and I knew that was where I needed to be. I wanted to stop crying and move my feet. All I managed was a few feet into the parking lot and a very heartfelt prayer begging God for strength and guidance. As soon as I prayed, I was able to take some deep breaths and feel a sense of peace that had to come straight from God. I managed to make my way back to my seat after wiping away the tears and putting on my “fine face.”

It took a couple praise songs before I felt a bit better, but with each passing moment I felt God’s assuring presence that I was right where I needed to be. I also still felt the urge to flee, but I knew God wanted me to hear something that night. So I waited. Then came the message. The preacher was talking about Christ’s sacrifice and what it means to truly serve. He talked about getting the me out of the way of God using us as vessels of His grace, love, and glory.

What? I got a bit uncomfortable. Surely this was not what God wanted me to hear. He wanted me to hear that I am loved and that everything will be okay, right? Yes. But He also wanted me to hear that I often let myself get in the way of what He wants to do in and through my life. He wanted me to hear that I might have let my search become a bit too much about myself and less about what Him and His glory.

Ouch!

I heard every word, and even though it was a painful truth, I realized that I had been focusing so much on the pain I was feeling, I wasn’t appreciating the beauty of the healing. Despite still having pain and still needing some soul restoration, God has been doing beautiful things in and around me that I was failing to fully appreciate. God was urging me to turn my eyes back towards Him so I could clearly see what He wants to do through me. He wants me to embrace the beauty He is redeeming in me, mind, body, and soul.

As I came home strangely refreshed yet bone weary, I reached for the devotional I had been given. These words from Nicole Johnson (Fresh Brewed Life) resonated with the earlier message:

“Are we seeking to embrace beauty so that the world will accept us? No. Beauty needs to be redeemed unto the Lord. Do we embrace beauty so we can look as if we have it all together spiritually? No. Beauty is embraced because we don’t have it all together, and we are trusting God in a more radical way than ever before to make something beautiful out of our surrendered lives.”

After reading those words, the message from the evening service came to mind. Everything Jesus did was beautiful; everything an act of love and service to glorify God. Was he accepted? Only by a few; rejected and in fact despised by many. Did he always have it all together spiritually? He had his moment in the Garden of Gethsemane where he wanted nothing more than to have his faith path altered; he was human. But he trusted God more radically than anyone ever had or has, and God asked him to surrender his life. God also used his life as the most beautiful gift. Through Christ’s death we can overcome pain. Through Christ’s resurrection we can claim life, and oh, what a beautiful life God wants us to claim.

God loves us. Oh how He loves us. He gave us the beautiful gift of his son. He gives us the gift of grace, and in His time he makes us beautiful.

For the remaining days of this Lenten journey I am going to be focusing on Christ’s last days, and the beauty we can learn from them. I hope you will join me.

Gracefully~~Heather

]]>https://heathertiger.wordpress.com/2012/04/02/for-everything-a-season-day-34-lent-journey/feed/3beauty from painheathertiger15Day 34beauty from painBox Full of Happinesshttps://heathertiger.wordpress.com/2012/03/31/box-full-of-happiness/
https://heathertiger.wordpress.com/2012/03/31/box-full-of-happiness/#commentsSat, 31 Mar 2012 07:30:38 +0000http://heathertiger.wordpress.com/?p=834I got a surprise in the mail yesterday…. my Vera Bradley order arrived early! I was visibly excited. Wiggling like a puppy or a kid on Christmas excited!

Plain on the outsidePretty pop of color on the inside

I ADORE Vera Bradley products. If I could afford it, I would own a full luggage set, and so many of their other colorful and wonderful products. I receive email updates and frequently peruse the website for sales. I had been keeping a close eye on sales lately because I had been green-lighted by Aaron to order by new purse when I came across a good deal.

Right before Micah was born in 2009, Aaron and I went shopping at a bookstore in KY and we purchased my very first Vera purse. It was my birth present! Sweet right? Absolutely. Why mess with tradition and a good thing? Before my love with Vera purses, I would exchange my purses at least 1x month. I carried that first purse for almost a year! Loved every moment with it. I got my second Vera purse as an actual birthday present from my mom in October 2010. It is still my current purse, and by far my favorite print. While still in really good shape, the wear and tear of everyday use for 1 & 1/2 yrs is starting to show a bit.

Parting will be such sweet sorrow with my Very Berry Paisley print

Hence the box of happiness carrying my new purse (my birth present for Kasen), plus a couple of extra pretties that were also on serious sale. Here is some Vera eye candy to start off the weekend on a happy note.

My new lovely...Mandy bag in Baroque. Pocket on the outside, 6 on the inside; love organization!The color looks a bit more yellow here than in real life..it's closer to lemon-lime.Quite a change from my other bags which all had purple in the print.

Journal in Very Berry Paisley was on sale for $12It will help keep my blog, novel, and DIY project ideas in order (off Pinterest!)

This girl loves flip-flops, so I couldn't pass up 50% Vera Bradley flip-flops in Safari Sunset.

I also had a 40% coupon I found online. Overall not too shabby for my new beauties! Simple joys in life need to be enjoyed. Vera Bradley is one of my simple joys.

I am also looking forward to my shopping and sushi date with my friend Becky today! She shares my love of Vera Bradley, and we might just go scope out the new prints at a local store. More friend time..YAY! Thank you honey for watching Micah so I can work on my friendships!

“The bride, the beautiful princess, a royal daughter, is glorious. She waits within her chamber, dressed in a gown woven with gold. Wearing the finest garments, she is brought to the King. Her friends, her companions, follow her into the royal palace. What a joyful, enthusiastic, excited procession as they enter the palace! She comes before the her King, who is wild for her!” – Psalm 45: 13-15 (as interpreted by Holly Wagner)

beau-ty (from dictionary.com)

1. the quality present in a thing or person that gives intense pleasure or deep satisfaction to the mind, whether arising from sensory manifestations (as shape, color, sound, etc.), a meaningful design or pattern, or something else (as a personality in which high spiritual qualities are manifest).

Who we do let define our beauty? Our worth? Where does true beauty lie? Do others see us as someone whose beauty they wish to emulate? Where does our beauty come from? Is it worth emulating?

I saw the above quote on Pinterest today, and it went along with the Scripture I had read in my devotional. I’m focusing on this idea of beauty, and what it really means. Am I someone who sees herself as beautiful? Honestly, it’s difficult to do when you are 30 wks pregnant. I am tired because I’m not sleeping well. I don’t feel like I get anything accomplished. I don’t FEEL beautiful. Is that my worth? Doesn’t God see me as beautiful no matter how I feel?

I’m going to be reflecting on this concept of beauty today and tomorrow. Think on this until then–

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” ~Philippians 4:8

” 7 or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. ”

2 Corinthians 12: 7-10

Aibileen Clark, one of the main heroines from The Help, faced great trials and persecution. She felt weak; yet she was made strong. She had great faith in the midst of struggles. She never forgot that she, and those she fought for, were worth every minute of pain. She knew her value and the value of others, even when told there was none to be found. She was worth the fight.

Do you know you are?

In the midst of a dark night, weary and burdened, I am reminded that it is not my strength that sees me through. It is by weakness that God’s power, love, and grace are lifted up, and He is enough.

In my weakness

I am reminded that I am Important

I am Loved

I am Chosen

I am Worth the Fight

So Are You!

Worth Fighting For

I heard you crying last night.

Muffled, hiding your pain,

from a world too busy to see

one suffering soul, slowly slipping away.

Can you take my hand and

let me pull you up gently,

long enough to see the hope

and remember you’re not alone.

You are worth fighting for.

No bruises to show, but battered still;

twisted and torn till you turn on yourself.

Pushing it down, covered by a sweet smile,

until all the broken pieces had nowhere to go, but in.

I’ll let you fall apart,

here in my arms,

until you are strong enough

to stand again and you know,

you are worth fighting for.

-Heather Tiger

Some ways I am reminding myself this weekend to rest my weary soul and that I am important and worth fighting for:

A pedi, sushi lunch, and catch up time with my BFF Melodi

Seeing family back home

A date to see The Hunger Games with Aaron (the hubs)

Worship

Small Group

I hope you have a restful, fun, and fabulous weekend! See you Monday!

Gracefully~~Heather

*Worth Fighting For is a poem from my poetry book, Leave a Light On, now out of print. It was written when I was 19.

“3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.”

2 Corinthians 1:3-7 (NIV)

It’s hard to believe we are on Day 25! God is leading me on an incredible journey that has taken unexpected, but fruitful turns. While He is still refining the message I will share with you tomorrow, I am honored to have a guest blogger joining us today. Leanne Penny shares her heart over at leannepenny.com as she allows God to minister through her life and words, “journeying with those hurting, healing, and choosing joy.”

I have known Leanne since 2007 when we met in a counseling class at Asbury Seminary in tiny Wilmore, KY. I was smitten with the fabulousness that is Leanne. We found many common interests including food, helping others, college football, and being silly and spending time with good friends.

Just for fun...A photo of Leanne and I from a gathering in KY to watch an OU football game (2008)

While her stay in Wilmore ended before mine, a fellow Okie, her husband Kel, brought her back to my home state (OK), and Leanne now makes a lovely home in Ada, OK for her family, which includes two beautiful children.

Photo courtesy of Folsom Photography and leannepenny.com

Leanne is a constant source of inspiration for me and many others, and she is on my must-read blogs list. When I think of people that embody the above verse from 2 Corinthians, Leanne comes to mind. She has suffered great loss and tragedy in her young life, has walked in utter darkness, but she has clung to God’s saving grace, letting His light shine through her life. Where she has found comfort in Christ, she is now able to offer that same comfort to others who are hurting, broken, and bruised. God is truly creating her ashes into something beautiful.

Sucker for Hope- The Pirate Elephant Saga

by Leanne Penny

Photo courtesy of leannepenny.com

This is my one year old son’s little toy elephant. When you pull his tail he plays a lullaby and our little man can’t nod off without him. He was intended for a soft snuggly life of comfort and happiness. The only problem is that when I was painting my sons room “peaceful meadow” green a few months ago, I dropped a big drip of paint directly on his eye. My son wasn’t even all that attached to him before I maimed his eye with “peaceful meadow” but after I blinded him in one eye I started putting him in bed with our son every night, to try to make up for maiming him so badly. I feel very real guilt over what I did to this poor elephant, so much so that I’ve spent real time thinking about ways to make it up to him. I feel like in his current state he’s probably the creepy guy of the playroom, that when we all leave the house and the toys come alive that he’s probably singled out and alone. The thought of this breaks my heart, so I have decided to give him a cool orange eye patch and give him a sort of “dos equis most interesting” toy in the world persona.

I have spent a lot of time lately thinking about why I got so broken up about the one eyed elephant. I came to understand that it touched on something deep inside me, I have a real passion to see people realize their created potential. My heart breaks for those who experienced pain that has stunted their growth and screwed with their hope. I hate the thought of orphans across the world that go uncared for, unloved and unfed. And yes, I experience real guilt when I maim a stuffed elephant.

I am a bleeding heart when it comes to hope, restoration and redemption. I love to go out to the salvage yard and give an old chair a new chance to bring warmth and comfort to our home. When a marriage fails, a diagnosis is terminal, a small business doesn’t make it or a friendship cannot be reconciled something aches within me. All that hope down the drain instead of growing and bringing beauty to our world, it’s just not the way it should be. Our world and lives are full of moments where hope doesn’t pan out, where potential isn’t realized but rather squandered, every moment holds potential for beauty but as we grow up we stop seeing the world for all that it could be and we start to give up hope.

This passion for hope and restoration is something that God put inside all of us, in my world sometimes it comes out in silly ways but mostly it defines my calling. I feel called to help people restore their hope, to unload their brokenness and exchange it for the easier yoke of God through Jesus, whose entire life’s purpose was to bring restoration to everything. When you see something broken, full of unrealized hope and potential and something stirs within you, that’s God using you to bring about his redemptive work. His business is to restore, renew and reunite. Romans 8 says all creation groans to be set right again, from the fields all the way up to the cosmos. It’s funny what God will use to remind us of our calling.

All around us are is brokenness and God works through our hands and feet, I so want to be used this way today.

How are you being nudged and broken to redeem and restore?

Well I’m off to sew an eye patch for a musical elephant. Hope you get after something quirky and wonderful of your own.

“”Now listen, daughter, don’t miss a word: forget your country, put your home behind you. Be here—the king is wild for you. Since he’s your lord, adore him. Set your mind now on sons— don’t dote on father and grandfather. You’ll set your sons up as princes all over the earth.”

Psalm 45:10-11, 16 (The Message)

Today, I am just going to let this scripture be the focus. I am working on a little more in-depth post covering some touchy issues, and I don’t want to rush it. The inspiration came late last night. I feel like God is really wanting this message to be a bit more than usual, so please bear with me until tomorrow.

I also overdid it a bit yesterday! The hubs took the day off (after a long week last week) and we worked on the yard before the rain hit; he mowed and I weeded some and picked up trash from the yard. Our yard is a pass-through for people (aggravating), and they dump their trash. I often see empty cigarette cartons lying in the grass. Fun for the kiddo to find. After the yard came painting! Yep, we got the nursery painted. Two coats in a room with no ceiling fan in humid, rainy, warm weather=no fun for this pregnant mom. Even with breaks between walls, for me, I was done in. So glad I put on a roast in the slow cooker so no dinner prep was expected later!

I went to pick up the little guy from his babysitter (whom he had been asking to go see ALL weekend), and we went over to see a family from the church so Micah could play with their 3 kids and the hubs could move some furniture back into the nursery. I love watching Micah interact with these kids. They love him, and he adores them. They are older by a few years, but they are so great with him. It was a battle to leave, but once convinced we had to go home to see daddy, he was on board. He is a very loving child and likes to give hugs and kisses, and he has started giving them to everyone when we leave somewhere. As he made his rounds to say goodbye, he decided Ella, their 7 yr. old daughter needed some extra kisses. He kissed her like 6 times until she kissed him back, even once on her nose! Sweet, adorable, and funny, but oh my….he is going to be a handful when he gets older! I got him home and his motor ran on full speed until I finally sang him to sleep at 9. He’s really fighting sleep these days. So not fun.

Needless to say, I am taking a day to rest some, recover, and focus on renewing my spirit in the gloomy rain.